LESSON XXI

Spoiling Christ's Kingdom

Acts IV. 32, to V. 17.

"An enemy hath done this."

R
ECAPITULATE last Lesson, briefly emphasizing the
Courage and Confidence and Enthusiasm for God's
service. What was the power that made them capable of
this? Power of Holy Ghost at Pentecost. Now turn today
from their public preaching and suffering and the
persecutions of men, and see the effects of this power
of the Holy Ghost on their ordinary life.

What two things are told of them in v. 32?
Meaning of "one heart and one soul"? How many were they that were
"of one heart and one soul"? (v. 4). Is this a
usual thing to happen in this world? How did it happen?
A great miracle, such miracles as Holy Ghost is
performing always on men's souls. Here are 5,000 men of
all varieties of age and character and position, of all
varieties of opinion and temper and taste and feeling.
Yet all in perfect agreement, because of their loving
God and loving each other so thoroughly. That is what
Holy Ghost always does, then and now.

Did their love consist merely in talking of love? How
did they show it? They gave up all for each other's
sake. Talk is cheap. Emotion is easy. But self-sacrifice is
a thorough test. You remember our Lesson on St. Mark
on "Glory of Self-sacrifice"? (Lesson VIII.) That
was Christ's teaching to men, that self-sacrifice for
God's sake and for others' sake was the grandest thing
in the world. And now His disciples were learning His
lesson. They cared only for God and their brethren.
Cared not for self or money. Neither said any man that
what he possessed was his own. They had one common
fund; the rich put in all their riches, that the poor
might share alike with themselves. They had learned
Christ's lesson, that the true use of wealth was—what?
Hoarding it up?—spending it all on our own fancies?
No—doing good, serving God and their brethren.

Do you think their plan of community of goods was a
very wise one? No. Even good men, filled with love and
with power of Holy Ghost, can make mistakes. It would
have been a beautiful plan if all
were entirely perfect.
But this wicked world spoiled its beauty. Poor
workingmen had not to work to support their
families—were supported free. Probably some got lazy;
other people pretended to be Christians in order to get
supported, and so on; and so after a while the Church
sadly learned that the devil could spoil the beauty
even of their lovely "Kingdom of God."

But if it were a mistake, was it not a glorious,
generous, noble mistake? Would you rather see a man
make such mistake with a
loving, generous motive, or see him letting the poor
suffer through his selfish caution? Which would God
rather see?

These early Christians were really trying to carry
out our Lord's idea of founding a true "Kingdom of God"
on earth. Remember our Lord's plan that He was so
enthusiastic about. (St. Mark, Lesson II.) A "new
earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness." A kingdom whose
laws should be? The laws of Heaven. Whose glory should
be? The glory of self-sacrifice. Whose power should be?
Power of Love. Whose subjects should be of the
character pictured in 1 Corinthians xiii. Tell me that
character? "Suffer long and are kind—envy
not—seek not
their own—bear all things—hope all
things—endure all things."

Have we yet got very near to having this beautiful
kingdom? No; but we are getting nearer to it. Where in
Lord's prayer do we pray for it? This little period in
the early Church was a grand attempt at it. But Satan
spoiled it greatly. Could not bear to see such a lovely
thing in the world. How did he spoil it? (1) By
tempting the poor to laziness and hypocrisy. (2) By
tempting the rich to pretend generosity.

Two specimens are picked out for us of the rich men.
Who? Read iv. 36, 37; v. 1, 2.
Be careful to notice that
the historian is contrasting the two. The bad chapter
division unfortunately spoils contrast. Contrast is
between work of Holy Ghost in Barnabas and work of
Satan in Ananias. What did Barnabas do? What sort of
character was he? Ever hear of him again? What did
Ananias do? Who shared his sin? Who tempted him? Why?
In order to spoil Christ's lovely kingdom. Like a
wicked boy spoiling another boy's beautiful things out
of spite. Oh, what a shame, in the glory of that
beautiful Christ life in the Church, to dash in that
horrible thing of ugliness and sin! Ought it not make
us angry with Satan? Make us hate him and resist him?
Make us so ashamed when we join with him, like Ananias,
and are disloyal to our Lord! But if it was Satan's
fault why blame Ananias? Could he have helped doing
what he did? See what Peter blames him for
(v. 3). He
is held responsible. He could have resisted. He made
himself tool of Satan. He let Satan fill his heart. Who
should have filled it? (ch. iv. 31).
He let Satan come
into the "temple of the Holy Ghost"
(1 Corinthians vi. 19),
and coax him to go against his Lord.

Now question fully on the whole story, ch. v. 1-17.
(Notice proof that Holy Ghost is God in
vv. 3, 4. "lied
unto God.") Did Ananias really tell a lie? Did he speak
at all? How could he then tell a lie? Yes. Acting a lie
is just the same as saying it. Ananias said nothing. He
simply walked in and laid down his money like Barnabas.
But he tried to make the Church believe he was a
generous, liberal Christian like Barnabas, full of love
to God and man. Do boys and girls sometimes care more
for good opinion of the Church than for that of God?
Think more of comrades' good opinion than that of God's?
Do they ever act a
lie, and comfort themselves that they have not told
one? Is there any difference in God's sight? Who
condemned Ananias to death? Peter? Certainly not.
Probably Peter was as much surprised as anyone else.
It was Christ who was watching so closely over every
movement of the Church (see Lesson on Acts I.), and saw
the need of a terrible punishment just then when men
were joining with Satan to spoil his beautiful plan for
the blessing and happiness of mankind. Apparently in
Sapphira's case Peter knew that the same thing would
happen as to her husband. But it was the Lord who
struck them both dead. We have been thinking so much
about His love that we are in danger of forgetting the
sterner side. Sometimes sinners force Him to be stern;
and, dearly though He loves poor sinners, He hates sin
with an awful hatred. If terrible punishment is
necessary to prevent terrible evil, He will inflict it.

See the effect—great fear. Yes, that effect sometimes
necessary. Great shock to the Church—would have been
greater shock, perhaps, if falsehood and hypocrisy
seemed to be thriving unpunished. It taught men not to
make light of God's holiness or presume too far on His
loving patience. (See v. 13).
No more hypocrites or
careless people dared to come into the Church of the
holy Christ.

LESSONS—

(1) Acted lie is same as spoken lie.

(2) Indignant resistance to Satan, the Lord's enemy,
who is trying to make tools of us with which to spoil
the Lord's blessed plans for good.

(3) What would make the Church to-day powerful and
successful as in the first days? More of the power of
the Holy Ghost, which we could have if in earnest about
it. We want to show the world this "one heart and one
soul," instead of the wretched divisions of Christians
who refuse to worship and work for God together. We
want to show, also, that we believe Christ's theory of
wealth, that the highest use of money is the service of
God and our brethren. We want to show them, like the
infant Church, the enthusiasm for God and
Righteousness, the willingness to bear everything for
Christ's sake—the beautiful lives, kindly, loving,
unselfish, brightening and blessing all life around us.
We should soon convert the "heathen at home" and the
heathen abroad. We should soon force the world to
believe in the "Kingdom of God" and in the power of
the Holy Ghost.